Dealing with cops, understanding your rights,.... by a cop.

First excellent op, it's good to hear from the real people behind the badges on this board. So many threads that show the bad side of law enforcement
have cast many officers in a bad light here.

I've always found that politeness is the key. Turn the vehicle off, wait till the officer approaches to roll the window down. Hands always in visible
sight. Do not start rifling for papers before the officer can get a good visual.

Now the most important thing, in a traffic stop; you never argue on the spot. The officer is not a judge.

I was stopped once by what we can call a jerk, but a jerk with a badge. I politely yes sir'd him to death...he wrote me three tickets. I did not
argue them there but I showed up in court. They made me wait till everyone who agreed to plead guilty and pay a fine had gone first to give the
officer a chance to get to the courtroom. (As a side note I was the only one who pled not guilty.)

He pointed out to the judge my suspicious behavior,I'm a spaz I admit it, but while I may appear to not be paying full attention I have a rather
gifted memory. They brought in a prosecutor and he helped by questioning the officer and the judge asked some questions. When it was my turn to speak
I corrected his account of the ordeal, and then challenged them to pull the records on his unit. I knew the car number he was driving his badge number
the weather...the just about everything on every question the judge asked me and proved that the officer had a faulty recollection. I brought his
testimony into light and showed where he'd made his error and proved my innocence. After I spoke the officer admitted he might have been mistaken,
and I walked out. I didn't pay a cent but I did have to invest my time.

Now the officer believed he was in the right when he stopped me. I knew I was innocent, I knew I could prove it, and I did what few do, I took the
time to prove it.

Lessons from this:
Don't bother arguing it till court
Argue it in court
Be respectful
Take notes, even if just mentally

I'm just real curious whether or not someone going to try to take over!
I trust the cops my brother is a cop.I know he would defend the republic if something like that is attempted.
I tell everyone on this board, to kill fellow citizens would rip all involved down to your souls.
Don't shoot, think.

You have the right to remain silent whether or not they read you your Miranda rights. Know when to envoke and assert your rights. In a traffic stop
you are required to hand over your drivers license, insurance, and registration. Don't answer any more questions. The cop will probably ask you to
get out of the car. Do as he says calmly and cool. Be as professional as the cop. By rule of the SCOTUS, cops can lie and coerce to their hearts
desire, you on the other hand can not. The cop will try to use fear to his advantage. Don't be afraid. Ask if you are being detained or if you are
free to go. If the cop puts you in cuffs, do not fear cuffs. It's another form of fear and coercion.

Ask again if you are free to go. This forces the cop to determine whether he can legally detain you beyond the lawful reasonable amount of time. Do
not consent to search and seizure. Don't fall for the statement "well if you have nothing to hide...blah blah blah". It is your legal right to
not consent to a search. Once again in regards to cuffs, dont confuse being cuffed with being arrested. Dont resist. If all goes well, the officer
will go sit in his car to do paperwork. He will then return, take the cuffs off, say his thing and be on your way. It is not illegal to know and
assert your rights. It won't make you friends in the cop community, but cops are not your friends. Even a during a friendly conversation, a cop is
data mining and profiling. If you are a law abiding citizen, there is no need for interaction with the cops. It will never benefit you.

Just watch shows like COPS and especially 48 hours. These shows show people who are ignorant of their rights and how to deal with a law enforcement
interaction. Now don't get me wrong, I love watching a criminal get taken down and charged for their crimes. I'm all for safer streets. The
problem is widespread though in our country. People do not really understand their rights and how to properly assert them. Law enforcement knows
this and that's why we have so many people getting rolled over while they scream "I know my rights, I know my rights!".

The Above Top Secret Web site is a wholly owned social content community of The Above Network, LLC.

This content community relies on user-generated content from our member contributors. The opinions of our members are not those of site ownership who maintains strict editorial agnosticism and simply provides a collaborative venue for free expression.